Marc Lamont Hill

An activist, social critic, and one of the nation's most notable African American leaders, Dr. Marc Lamont Hill is among a new generation of public intellectuals who move with equal ease between Faculty Row and Fraternity Row, "the street" and Main Street.

Adding a depth of understanding to the country's changing paradigms on diversity, hip-hop culture, youth, politics, and national issues, Hill is known for his thoughtful perspectives on everything from sexuality to education to religion. His respected commentary has been featured on NPR, in The Washington Post, Essence, and The New York Times, as well as on Fox News where he is a regular contributor.

A social activist who is deeply involved within his community, Hill preaches a higher degree of involvement and economic self empowerment, raising the bar of African American leadership to a new level. As a scholar—he is an associate professor of education and anthropology at Columbia University and an award-winning newspaper columnist and blogger—Hill has shed light on an entirely new approach to teaching. He is author of the pioneering Beats, Rhymes, and Classroom Life: Hip-Hop Pedagogy and the Politics of Identity, and is currently completing work on two manuscripts: Knowledge of Self: Race, Masculinity, and the Politics of Reading and First Class Jails/Second Class Schools: Education in the Age of Incarceration.

Whether he's offering insights into controversial issues like the war on education or sensitive ones like race in a post-Obama America, Hill offers a fresh, informed, thought-provoking perspective that never fails to challenge and engage.